1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a modular furniture frame, more particularly to a modular furniture frame that is easy to assemble and disassemble so as to facilitate transport of the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
Referring to FIG. 1, a conventional modular sofa is shown to comprise a support base 10, a seat 11 mounted on top of the support base 10, a pair of armrest units 12 mounted on opposite lateral sides of the seat 11, a leg cushion 13 disposed in front of the seat 11, and a backrest 14 disposed behind the seat 11. The seat 11, the armrest units 12 and the backrest 14 are relatively wide and are covered with soft leather so as to provide comfort to users.
Referring to FIG. 2, each of the armrest units 12 includes an upright support member 121 and a horizontal armrest member 122 that are connected integrally to each other. When assembling an armrest unit 12, a pair of fasteners 123 must first pass through the seat 11 before engaging the upright support member 121 so as to secure the armrest unit 12 on the respective lateral side of the seat 11. The armrest member 122 extends horizontally from a top edge of the upright support member 121 so as to provide a comfortable resting place for the user""s arm.
The support base 10 includes a parallel pair of upright side frame parts 101, a pair of front coupling members 102 provided respectively on front ends of the side frame parts 101, and a pair of rear coupling members 103 provided respectively on rear ends of the side frame parts 101. Each of the side frame parts 101 has the bottom side of the upright support member 121 of one of the armrest units 12 secured thereon through a pair of vertically extending fasteners 124.
The leg cushion 13 is connected to the front coupling members 102, whereas the backrest 14 is connected to the rear coupling members 103.
Each of the front coupling members 102 has a front end mounted with a vertically extending mounting plate 105. The mounting plate 105 has an L-shaped cross-section, and a front side for mounting the leg cushion 13 thereon.
Each of the rear coupling members 103 is generally triangular in shape, and has a downwardly and forwardly inclining edge that faces toward the leg cushion 13. Each of the rear coupling members 103 is formed with a stop block 104 that projects from an outer side face thereof.
With further reference to FIGS. 3 and 4, the backrest 14 includes a backrest member 15 and a pair of engaging sleeves 16 (only one is visible in the drawings), each of which is mounted fixedly on a respective lateral side of a lower portion of the backrest member 15. Each engaging sleeve 16 includes a sleeve part 161 and a locking member 164.
The sleeve part 161 converges in an upward direction, and includes a base wall 162 and a pair of limiting walls 163 that project respectively from front and rear edges of the base wall 162 and that are bent toward each other. The base wall 162 is secured on the backrest member 15.
The locking member 164 is generally inverted U-shaped, and is mounted on top of the sleeve part 161 prior to mounting the sleeve part 161 on the backrest member 15. The locking member 164 includes a top wall part 165 disposed on top of the sleeve part 161, an inner wall part 166 extending downwardly from an inner edge of the top wall part 165 and to be disposed between the base wall 162 and the backrest member 15, and an outer wall part 167 extending downwardly from an outer edge of the top wall part 165 that is opposite to the inner edge. The outer wall part 167 has a distal end formed with a stop flange 168 that extends toward the base wall 162.
During assembly, the sleeve part 161 of each engaging sleeve 16 is sleeved on the corresponding rear coupling member 103 such that the stop flange 168 abuts against a bottom edge of the stop block 104, thereby locking the engaging sleeve 16 to the corresponding rear coupling member 103. Therefore, to detach the backrest 14 from the support base 10, the stop flanges 168 must be pulled outwardly to disengage from the stop blocks 104, and the backrest 14 must be pulled upwardly at the same time. Since the backrest 14 is rather wide and heavy, and since the engaging sleeves 16 are located at the lower portion of the backrest member 15 and are thus not easy to reach, removal of the backrest 14 cannot be easily conducted by a single person.
Apart from the aforesaid disadvantage, the following are other shortcomings of the conventional modular sofa:
1. the armrest member 122 of each armrest unit 12 extends horizontally from the top edge of the upright support member 121, the width of the modular sofa is increased accordingly, which can hinder passage through narrow alleys, elevator doors, entrances, exits, etc., thereby demanding detachment of the armrest units 12 during transport. Because the upright support members 121 of the armrest units 12 are fastened to the support base 10 by means of the fasteners 124, removal of the armrest units 12 is a rather awkward and time-consuming task.
2. The leg cushion 13 is supported solely by the mounting plates 105 on the front coupling members 102. No support is provided to the central section of the leg cushion 13.
Therefore, the main object of the present invention is to provide a modular furniture frame having a backrest frame unit that can be easily assembled and disassembled.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a modular furniture frame having armrest frame units that can be easily assembled and disassembled.
Accordingly, a modular furniture frame of this invention comprises a seat frame unit and a backrest frame unit.
The seat frame unit includes a parallel pair of upright side frame parts and a pair of rear coupling members. Each of the side frame parts has front and rear ends opposite to each other in a first direction. The side frame parts are spaced apart from each other in a second direction transverse to the first direction. Each of the rear coupling members has a base strip that extends in the first direction and that is connected to the rear end of a respective one of the side frame parts, and a pair of upright tines that extend integrally from the base strip and that cooperate to form an insert notch having a width which increases in a direction away from the base strip.
The backrest frame unit includes a backrest member having a lower end to be disposed between the rear coupling members, and a pair of engaging members mounted respectively on opposite lateral sides of the lower end of the backrest member. Each of the engaging members includes an inner plate mounted on the respective one of the lateral sides of the backrest member, and an outer plate having an intermediate insert portion mounted on the inner plate. The insert portion is inserted removably into and is configured to mate with the insert notch in an adjacent one of the rear coupling members. The insert portion has front and rear edges opposite to each other in the first direction. The outer plate further has a pair of wing portions that extend respectively in the first direction from the front and rear edges of the insert portion and that cooperate with the inner plate to form a pair of insert grooves. The insert grooves receive removably and respectively the tines of the adjacent one of the rear coupling members.
Preferably, the modular furniture frame further comprises a pair of armrest frame units, each of which includes an upright support member and an armrest member. The upright support member extends in the first direction, is mounted detachably on the seat frame unit, and is disposed at an outer lateral side of a respective one of the side frame parts. The support member has a top side provided with a pair of upright insert tubes. The armrest member is mounted detachably on top of the support member, and has a horizontal section with a bottom side that is provided with a pair of insert posts extended removably and respectively into the insert tubes.